The Lorax. Santa Clause. Michael Jackson.What do they have in common? Zaniya Rockett, East Leyden senior, the face behind the Leyden spirit and involvement. Her bright personality and comical jokes helped her win the title of Homecoming Royal. Zaniya shares her thoughts about winning Homecoming Royal. She says, “I feel like, after dressing up as the Lorax, it kind of really got me more votes. But before I was just kind of like, it is what it is. I win, great if I lose, also great. I was in shock. I couldn’t believe that I had actually won. I was like, Wait, me, because I was just sure that somebody else was gonna win. I was definitely in shock that I had won.” Rockett was beyond thrilled to hear her name called. “I called my mom and I was screaming,” she explains, “I’m like, Ma, I won. I won because I was so excited. They kept telling me, you’re gonna win, you’re gonna win. But I’m like, No, I’m not gonna win. I don’t think I’m gonna win. Like I’m just doing it for the fun of it. So I called her and said, I won. My mom’s my best friend. I mean, obviously I have a best friend, but she’s number one best friend. That’s my bestie for real.” Zaniya says as her smile grows. Rockett also shares how involvement impacted her life at Leyden. I felt part of the school community when I dressed up as Santa Claus, before we left for winter break last year. It put my eyes on everybody’s faces, because I doubt that they expected that. I feel like it makes me happy when I see other people laughing and stuff like that. That’s why I did the Lorax, because it was so fun. Everybody was laughing, having a good time, and that’s what I want to do.” She states, “I feel like last year was kind of when I definitely started dressing up for spirit week more, and started going a little bit more out of my bubble. And this year, well, because of the Lorax, it was really fun. Zaniya will continue lighting up the hallways at Leyden. She hopes to see more school spirit from everyone. “Getting involved and having that school spirit is definitely what makes school fun, and you have to remember you’re only in high school for four years. Make the best of it.” Zaniya continues, “I would like to tell my younger self to stop caring what everybody else thinks, and go YOLO like I feel like my younger self. I always cared about people’s opinions, and it kind of steered me in different directions. But now I don’t care about anybody’s opinion, because guess what? The only opinion that matters is mine. So I would tell my younger self, stop caring what other people think. Who cares?”